Cuff link construction



y 3, 1966 D. w. GREEN 3,248,766

CUFF LINK CONSTRUCTION Filed July 2, 1964 I NVEN TOR,

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I v 2 M W I 21 flrrae/vsv United States Patent 3,248,766 CUFF LINK CONSTRUCTION David W. Green, Box 3066-, Grand Central Station, Glendale, Calif. Filed July 2, 1964, Ser. No. 380,010 2 Claims. (Cl. 24102) permits a person to insert his hand through the cuff or to withdraw the hand therefrom with ease.

Modern cuff links now on the market usually have heads of greater dimension than the longest dimension of the buttonholes in the cuff. The present invention permits one of the heads of each cuff link to be detached from linkage to permit easy passage of the linkage through the buttonholes of the cuff followed by reattachment of the head to the linkage.

An object of my invention is to provide a cuff link construction which permits the application of the links to the cuffs prior to wearing the shirt. Well dressed men as a rule intermediately fold a French end and crease the same before applying a cuff link. This may be done with my invention and the cuff link will expand to allow a normal hand or extra large hand to pass through the cuff. The hand may be removed from the cuff followed by disconnecting the cuff link from the cuff.

Another object is to provide a. cuff link wherein manufacturing operations have been reduced to a minimum, which has few parts and which may be produced by automatic machinery. In addition, the present construction permits awgreater separation of the cuff link heads than permitted in my patent application structure, supra.

In the drawings:

, FIGURE 1 is a fragmentary perspective view of a French type cuff with the cuff link of the present invention holding the cuff folded; 7

FIGURE 2 is a fragmentary sectional view of the cuff link and cuff on an enlarged scale, taken on the line 2-2 of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 3 is a fragmentary sectional view of the cuff link of FIGURE 2 in expanded position; and,

FIGURE 4 is a fragmentary sectional view of a portion of the cuff link taken on the line 4-4 of FIGURE 3.

Referring to the drawing, I have shown in FIGURE 1 a French type cuff 1 attached to a sleeve 2 forming a part of a shirt. French type cuffs that are in common use today consist of double folds of fabric providing four thicknesses, as best illustrated in FIGURE 2 at 3, 4, 5, and 6. The different fabric folds are provided with buttonh'oles as shown in FIGURE 2 at 7, 8, 9 and 10, and when the buttonholes match, as shown in FIGURE 2, the cuff presents the appearance as shown in FIGURE 1 which gives the shirt, and particularly the cuff, a dressy appearance. As stated in the objects, the average cuff link may have heads or buttons of a greater dimension than the buttonholes of the cuff which does not permit the heads to be passed through the buttonhol-es. Such a construction requires that one of the heads be removed so that linkage or back interconnecting the heads may be passed through the buttonholes for reattachment to a head. It becomes essential in the design of such a cuff link that the parts thereof be so correlated as to assure that the detachable head is held to the linkage so that loss of the head is prevented during ordinary use of a shirt.

As shown in the drawing, my invention includes two heads 20 and 21 of a size which does not permit the same to pass through one of the buttonholes of the cuff. One of the heads has secured to the inner side thereof or the side which faces the cuff a linkage designated as an entirely as 22. The linkage includes an external tubular member 23 adapted to be fitted at one end within a tubular retainer member 24, which member is soldered or otherwise secured at 25 to the inner surface of the head 21. The tubular retainer member 24 is provided with an internal annular flange 2 6 and the tubular member 26 is formed with an external annular groove 27 adaptedto receive the annular flange 26 when the tubular member 23 has its lower end engaging, or approximately so, the inner surface of the head 21, as shown at 28. Thus the annular flange 26 has a pressed fit engagement within the annular groove 27 of the tubular member. F or ease in assemblage I have found that the annular flange 26 may be bent slightly upwardly to allow the lower end of the tubular member to enter the retainer member 24 followed by rolling the retainer member to assure that the annular flange fully enters the annular groove 27. Actual experience has indicated that this procedure, when followed, assures that the tubular member 23 is held by the retainer member 24 against separation. The upper end of the tubular member 23 is provided with an internal annular flange .30. The linkage 22 includes a cylindrical member 3 1 having a height equal to the tubular member 23 and provided 'at its lower end with an external flange 32 sli-dably fitting within the tubular member 22. Member 31 is provided with spaced apart annular grooves 33 and 34 and with a hook 35. This hook is preferably formed of springlike material and is of uniform thickness and width so as to provide what may be termed as a flat hook, as shown in FIGURES 3 and 4. Within the tubular member 23 and surrounding the member 31 is a loosely coiled spring 40. This spring has its ends freely terminating adjacent the flanges 30 and 32, and is of the compression type having sufficient resiliency to normally maintain the linkage members 23 and 3 1 fully telescoped as shown in FIGURE 2. The head 20 is provided on its inner surface with an eye member or staple 41 of expanded U form the legs thereof being soldered at 42 to the head.

The operation, uses and advantages of my invention are as follows.

It will be observed that the linkage 22 for each cuff link, considered as an entirety, includes the outer tubular member 23, the cylindrical member 31 which telescopes within the tubular member 23, the coil spring 40 which holds the cylindrical member 31 retracted within the tubular member 23, together with the hook 35 carried by member 31 and the retaining member 24 for securing the tubular member 23 to the head 21. In addition the linkage includes the staple or eye member 41. The heads 20 and 21 may be of any configuration dependent upon the designer thereof and in the drawing said heads are large disks which may be externally ornamented or plain surfaced. When it is desired to secure the folds of the cuff, as shown in FIGURE 1, the hook 35 is disconnected from the staple or eye member 41 by pulling outwardly on the head 20 while holding the head 21 against movement, which compresses the spring 40 from the position shown in FIGURE 2 to that of FIGURE 3. Normally, the end of the hook 35 overlaps the tubular member 23 and is in close proximity thereto. However, when the cylindrical member 31 is extended to the position shown in FIGURE 3 the staple or eye member may be readily disengaged from the hook. Such disengagement is easy of accomplishment as the member 31 may be pressed sideways so that one of the grooves 33 or 34 receives the flange 30 to thereby hold the members extended. Such a position allows easy removal of the staple or eye member from the hook 35. The linkage considered as an entirety, may be passed through the buttonholes of the cuff and the head 20 reattached by passing the hook through the staple or eye member 41 and upon release the spring 40 is allowed to expand which will bring the head 20 to the position shown in FIGURE 2 to secure the folded cuff as shown in FIG- URE 1.

The cuff link of my invention, as previously stated, is adapted to be applied to a cuff prior to wearing a shirt as expansion is permitted between the heads of the cuff link with the result that the hand may readily pass through the cuff whether the hand be normal or extra large and, likewise, the withdrawal of the hand through the cuff. With respect to this feature, it is to be observed that whereas a tension spring between the heads would allow separation of the heads, nevertheless, the tension spring is subject to disadvantages in that if it breaks the cuff link is rendered useless until a newspring is provided. With the present invention a compression spring is utilized and whether or not the spring should break makes little difference in the operation of the cuff link. The spring is simply compressed from the position shown in FIGURE 2 to that of FIGURE 3 regardless of breakage. Furthermore, in a cuff link as shown and described, the heads are usually of a diameter such that moving one head at an angle to the other head will not release the staple 41 from the hook 35. It requires an extension of the linkage members as shown in FIGURE 3 to permit release of the staple from the hook. Furthermore, the open ended hook 35 as shown in FIGURE 2 normally lies between folds of the cuff. As a consequence, the hook will not release from the staple.

While I have shown in my drawing the shank of the cuff link as having a cylindrical inner member and an outer circular tubular member, it is evident that other geometrical sections may be used such as an oval cross section for both members, or an oval cross section for the outer tubular member and a cylindrical section for the member 31.

It is to be particularly noted that assembly of the shank of the cuff link is easy of accomplishment and that the temper of the spring 40 is'not effected by the heat of silver soldering member 24 to one of the heads ofthe cuff link. It is obvious that the members 22 and 24 may be secured in working relationship by means other than the snap engagement depicted at 26 and 27 such as by silver soldering the two members together.

Iclaim:

1. In cuff link construction, a pair of heads and a shank joining said heads, said shank comprising: a tubular memher, an annular retainer member secured to a first of said heads and means between the annular member and the tubular member effecting snap locking engagement therebetween; the opposite end of said tubular member provided with an internal annular flange, a cylindrical member provided at one end with a flange which end is telescoped within the tubular member, a coil compression spring surrounding the cylindrical member and interposed between the flanges of the tubular member and the cylindrical member for normally urging said members into said telescoped position, the outer end of said cylindrical member provided with a spring hook having a free end, which end is parallel with the axis of the cylindrical member and spaced from the periphery of said cylindrical member, the second head provided with an eye member for engagement with the hook and said cylindrical member provided with an annular groove for receiving the annular flange of the tubular member to hold the cylindrical member in a position to compress the spring and to permit detachment of the eye member from the hook.

2. In cuff link construction, a pair of heads and a shank interconnecting the heads, said shank comprising: a tubular member one end of which is fixedly secured to a first of said heads, a cylindrical member telescopically received within the tubular member, the end of said cylindrical member within said tubular member being provided with a flange, and said tubular member at its opposite end being provided with a flange surrounding the cylindrical member, a coiled compression spring interposed between the flange of the tubular member and the flange of said cylindrical member to normally maintain thecylindrical member telescoped within the tubular member, and means detachably engaging the cylindrical member with the second of said heads, said cylindrical member provided with an annular groove for engagement with the flange of the tubular member to miantain the cylindrical member in extended position from the tubular member and to hold the coil spring compressed.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 730,277 6/1903 Libaire 24-402 762,593 6/1904 Lixner 267--71 1,226,378 5/1917 Riemer et a1. 24102 1,370,779 3/ 1921 Bradbury 24102 1,693,993 12/1928 Rogers 24-102 1,837,039 12/1931 Gober 24102 FOREIGN PATENTS 580,467 9/ 1924 France. 964,733 3/ 1957 Germany.

EDWARD C. ALLEN, Primary Examiner.

D, GRIFFIN, Assistant Examiner. 

2. IN CUTT LINK CONSTRUCTION, A PAIR OF HEADS AND A SHANK INTERCONNECTING THE HEAD, SAID SHANK COMPRISING: A TUBULAR MEMBER ONE END OF WHICH IS FIXEDLY SECURED TO A FIRST OF SAID HEADS, A CYLINDRICAL MEMBER TELESCOPICALLY RECEIVED WITHIN THE TUBULAR MEMBER, THE END OF SAID CYLINDRICALK MEMBER WITHIN SAID TUBULAR MEMBER BEING PROVIDED WITH A FLANGE, AND SAID TUBULAR MEMBER AT ITS OPPOSITE END BEING PROVIDED WITH A FLANGE SURROUNDING THE CYLINDRICAL MEMBER, A COILED COMPRESSION SPRING INTERPOSED BETWEEN THE FLANGE OF THE TUBULAR MEMBER AND THE FLANGE OF SAID CYLINDRICAL MEMBER TO NORMALLY MAIN- 